New Job

Since moving to Texas I have done odd babysitting jobs, but had yet to find a full time job.  Last week I was offered a full time job right down the road from where we are renting.  It had been my hope to find a job in town without a long commute.  I will be working at a local car dealership and am very thankful for the opportunity.  Hubby is interviewing as well.  As of Feb 28, he will be completely done with the military. 
  Thank you so much for everyone who has been praying for us and our job situation.  We sure appreciate it!

Update on Life

Wow guys!  Its been a while.  I am sure you all thought I quit blogging, with good reason too.  I didn't!  I only just now got my computer set back up and have access to the internet.  In the past month, hubby and I have moved to Texas.  Why? you ask?  Well Hubby is getting out of the military in Feb. He had enough leave saved up that he could be done working mid Dec and on vacation until the end of Feb.  We debated for a long time if we wanted to stay in Maryland, or move elsewhere.  We realized that without the military pay, we wouldn't be able to keep our mortgage even with both of us working.  And if we couldn't stay on the farm, we knew we didn't want to rent an apartment in town.  While we love Maryland, what was keeping us there other than the military, was the freedom to have the farm. Take that away and we didn't want to stay.  It was incredibly hard saying goodbye to all our friends and "adopted" family there.  Moving to Texas allows us to be a short drive to Hubby's family.  I have extended family in Texas and close relatives in Arkansas.  Its also a shorter plane ride to California! 
  Once we decided to move and told the Army, we figured we would have a month before they came to pack.  Since Hubby is getting out, they will move us to our final destination (as long as its not farther than Houston where he enlisted).  Apparently December is not a popular moving month, so the packers were completely open.  They came less than a week after we got our official orders.  For two weeks after the movers came we were still staying in the house with only an air mattress and our clothes.  I don't recommend that as a long term solution.  Since Hubby and I have two cars, we had to drive separately.  I left early so I could spend some time with my family in Arkansas.  Once in Texas, we found the cutest rental (Ill post pictures once all our boxes are unpacked).  The house was built in 1929 and has been lovingly restored.  Swoon!
  So now I am in the midst of unpacking, decorating, cooking (so thankful to have our pots and pans back!) and taking lots of knitting breaks.  I am not sure of the direction this blog will take.  Since we are renting, we can't tear up the yard to plant a big garden.  We will still be living much the same as before (just with no farm animals for now).  The kitchen is so tiny in this new house that there is no room for a microwave.  So we will be learning to live without one.  One of the biggest money eaters in our budget is going out to eat.  I have barely any willpower and am the first to suggest grabbing a pizza.  This year one of my goals is to cook from scratch at least 5 nights a week.  Ill write a post on my reasoning's for that later.  All that is to say that the blog will be featuring more cooking, frugal living, knitting, living simply and whatever else might come up.  For the time being you wont be seeing chickens or goats although chickens are allowed in our town (just need to work on our landlord...).  I appreciate any one who is still reading.  Thank you for understanding that life happens and not always (or most times) how we plan it!

Going Gluten Free

For the past five years or so (maybe even longer) I have been having horrible stomach issues. The Army doctors put me on all sorts of acid reflux meds. When those didn't work they had me try multiple brands of acid relief pills. Those still didn't work. A couple years ago while living in Maryland I had to go to the ER for unbearable back and stomach pain. With one guess the doctors there figured out that I had a rotten gallbladder. It needed to come out. stat! They removed it and although it did relieve my pain, I started noticing horrible cramping (way worse than period cramping) after I would eat. I couldnt figure out what was causing the cramps. They didn't appear only when I ate fried food, or any specific item- so I thought. I would have bad cramps if we ate at home or went out. If we had spaghetti or cereal. It was extremely frustrating, but I thought it was just a byproduct of not having my gallbladder anymore. Since moving in with my parents we have discovered (what I think) is the issue. Wheat. When my dad was young he was allergic to wheat and couldn't eat it. I am thinking I have always had an intolerance to it. According to my research, if a person who has a gluten (wheat) intolerance has any sort of major surgery (gallbladder definitely qualifies) the symptoms can be magnified after recovery. Which would explain why I have only noticed the horrible cramps since my gallbladder surgery. This year my dad (who had grown out of his gluten allergy) has gone back on the gluten free diet. He motioned for me to join him, and figuring I had nothing to lose except pain, I accepted. Its been over a month that I have been gluten free and let me tell you- no cramps! none! The other day I got a bit relaxed and had a cookie thinking there was minimal flour and I wouldn't be able to tell. wrong! Lets just say that I wont be having a cookie for a while again. I am looking forward to starting this gluten free plan in hopes that I will feel better. Already I have more energy than I can ever remember. I feel that so many of my medical complaints over the past 5 years are explained in the gluten intolerance. According to livestrong.com "Gluten intolerance can sometimes manifest as unexplained infertility". Why was this not presented when all the infertility specialists couldn't figure out why I wasn't getting pregnant. I was so tired of "everything looks great" or "we don't know why you can't get pregnant". According to the book The Wheat Belly (which I am currently reading) a symptom of gluten intolerance is "incapacitating cramps" yes! I had been describing my cramps as so bad that if you are driving you need to grip the wheel of the car and hold on. Or if you are walking you need to stop and hold on until the cramps are gong. incapacitating indeed. With so many life changing events going on right now, it is nice to have hope. Hopefully I will not get burnt out trying to find gluten free foods. Hopefully I will be seeing even more benefits than I can see now. I am not sure how it will effect the blog, but I look forward to sharing gluten free successes (and failures) with you. Stay tuned.

A portrait of a man

This is what sits on top of Hubby's gun cabinet. The beret is finishing up drying, all stiff and new. The flag is a flag Hubby flew in the skies of Iraq. This is coming from a man who is required to report to work without knowing when he will get paid. If the government shuts down as planned, there is no telling when soldiers will get paid. All that conisdered, when I came home from work tonight I found hubby shaving his beret. To get the perfect shape, he soaked it in water and proceeded to walk around until it dried (using the hairdryer to speed it up at some point). Hubby bought new combat boots today. He takes pride in his job and the uniform he wears, no matter what the pay. Being proud to wear a uniform doesnt get the mortgage paid, or dinner on the table. Being proud to wear the uniform means we will shell out gas money to get hubby to and from work, and trust that the government will work everything out. I could go on and on about how mad I am at the government. How I have no idea how we are supposed to pay bills if we arent getting paid. But what would be the point. No matter what hot mess the government is in, we support our country. Come Monday morning, Hubby will put on his uniform, zip up his jacket, lace up his new combat boots and don his perfectly shaped beret. He will go to work for a government and not ask "when". He will do what needs to be done, along with all the other soldiers. He is proud of his job, of his uniform, of his country. And I am proud of him. Thank you Hubby for all you do for the government, the country and me. I love you!

Victory Garden Farm

Hubby and I were so fortunate to buy our "farm" in July. At that time, the "farm" was a house, 5 acres, and 4 outbuildings, otherwise known as slave quarters. After living there for two months, we have transformed the house to our HOME. One of the outbuildings is a playhouse for the kids who will pass through this farm. Another outbuilding Hubby is in the process of making his workshop. Yet another outbuilding (was not safe and insurance said we had to take it down) is half torn down, half standing. The wood will become our chicken coop for our future meat chickens. And the fourth, biggest outbuilding will become the small barn. The backyard makeover will forever be in progress. Hubby has already cleared over 30 trees, ensuring we have firewood for next winter. This place, our HOME, we will call Victory Garden Farm. During World War II, American citizens were urged to grow victory gardens in their backyards so that the food from farms could be sent to the soldiers. Citizens pitched in to help out for the greater good. That is what we aim to do. We will plant a large garden in the back, grow our own meat and try to be as self sufficient as possible. We have become too dependent on fast food and getting things from others. I want to understand the whole process of what we are taking in. We feed the chickens, which fertilizes the soil for the garden, where we will plant seed and grow food, and the scraps will be given to back to the chickens to turn into fertilizer yet again. Its an amazing circle and I want to witness it all. By no means are we expecting this to be all fun and games. I understand that there will be death and heartache. But there will also be births and growth. There will be hardwork and payoffs. I am looking forward to eating the veggies from the garden next year. Right now the garden is not even plowed. What little of a garden that survived the move is in containers by the future barn. With hubby being in the army, and moving from Texas to Maryland, its nice to finally have a place of our own. A place thats ours. A place to belong. Home. We look forward to sharing our journey with you. So please, come along as we build our farm.