After what felt like a week of everything breaking down at once, I’m happy to report that things around our homestead are finally starting to look up again.
First and foremost, the refrigerator is officially back up and running thanks to my incredibly handy husband. Praise the Lord! After days of living out of ice chests and trying to remember which cooler held the butter and which held the eggs, having a working fridge again feels like true luxury.
Now if I could just find the time to actually fill it.
Between house projects, gardening season, and trying to keep up with regular life, the refrigerator currently looks a little emptier than I’d like. At least it’s cold again, and honestly, at this point, we’re counting that as a major win.
Out in the garden, we officially added another raised garden box this week. There’s something so hopeful about expanding the garden each year. Every new box is another opportunity to grow more food!
Since we added one, we might as well add another, right?
This weekend my husband plans to use a neighbor’s sawmill to mill lumber for yet another garden box using a tree from our property. Honestly, I should probably stop casually mentioning gardening ideas around here because somehow they keep turning into full construction projects.
But my motto at this point is simple: If you build them, I will fill them.
Of course, it wouldn’t be a normal week around here without at least one unexpected inconvenience.
We’ve officially been without internet since last week, and our current estimated timeframe for a new setup is somewhere between one and three weeks. So if you’ve ever wondered what it’s like trying to run an online business while bouncing between the library and generous friends’ homes searching for Wi-Fi… I can now confidently say it builds character.
Thankfully, we have sweet friends who graciously let me come over and use their internet when I need to get work done, and I’ve also been spending quite a bit of time working from the library. It’s not exactly convenient, but honestly, it’s been a good reminder of how thankful we are for the people God has placed in our lives.
As always, there is a blessing in everything. We’ve spent way more quality time as a family in the evenings this week. It’s been fun to dust off the old DVDs and DVD player to watch movies that we haven’t seen in years. Apparently, it is still possible for kids to sit through a whole movie with their parents.
The work on our house painting project is still underway too, which means the outside of our home currently looks somewhere between “under renovation” and “please ignore the mess.” But we’re excited to see it all come together.
And while the projects and chaos continue, there have also been some really wonderful moments this week.
Our oldest son graduates from college in just two more weeks, which honestly feels surreal. It’s hard to put into words what it feels like watching your children grow into adulthood. We’re incredibly proud of him and excited to celebrate this huge milestone together as a family.
Our 17-year-old son also just found out that he qualified for Nationals in Trap shooting, which is such an exciting accomplishment after all the hard work and practice he’s put in.
And our 13-year-old daughter, who has been working as a gymnastics coach, recently received a rave review and was asked to take on more classes. Watching her grow in confidence and responsibility has been such a blessing.
Life around here is definitely busy. Some days it feels wonderfully full, and other days it feels slightly chaotic with a side of exhaustion. When we stop and look around, we can clearly see God’s goodness woven through every part of it.
Working appliances, growing gardens, hardworking kids, kind friends, exciting milestones, and a husband who somehow keeps all of this moving forward. We have so much to be thankful for.
God is so good.
From our homestead to yours,
Eliza
