Who are you?

Well I am up WAY too late for somone who has to get up early to take children to appointments, but it's so quiet in the house and Danes' laptop is free.  I was perusing my blogger dashboard page, it shows me who visits from different websites or blogs.  I recognize and have visited or followed just about everyone there, except this one http://www.quakerinfo.com/  , I have had 69 page views originating with Quakerinfo, and curiosity has gotten the best of me.  Maybe this is bad blogging form, or not good manners, I visit blogs all the time and no one knows I was there, or maybe they do!  Ok, I think I am getting too tired and I will probally read this in the morning and wonder where my brain was!
By the way if any of you ever want to contact us, to ask questions we would love to hear from you. We can be reached by email here anderson.inherittheearth@gmail.com

Plain and Simple Living

I wrote and saved the following post the other day, before the "tragedy", I am sorry to report that our laptop, the one that was going to the farm with us, was fried.  It has been shipped away to see if it's under warranty, but even if it is it will be 5 to 7 weeks before we get it back.  For now I can use Danes computer or my Moms but once we get out on the farm I don't know what well do!  We simply don't have the money to get a new laptop now.  I am praying that if God wants us to continue this blog He will provide the means. 
So for the following post there was going to be LOTS of pictures, but those pics are now lost somewhere in an unacessable hard drive.  When we take more photos, I will have Ileigh add them to this post. 


Nothing about my life right now is simple, there are boxes stacked to the ceiling, yard sale piles, wet paint on the walls and the dog and all the paper work that goes with moving across the country.  Needless to say it is pure chaos!  BUT, I do desire a plain and simple life, and that is a big part of why we are moving to the farm.  What exactly is simple and plain?  I know these words will mean different things to different people, to Dane and I they mean a slower, calmer life, not one lived in the fast lane always going, taking children here and there, running, running and then running some more.  It means staying home, working at home, not zipping to the store every time you need something.  It doesn't mean less work, a simpler life often means more work.  But work with a meaning, working towards something lasting not just filling your hours with busy work. 
A plain life can mean many different things as well.  When you say "plain" most people think of the Plain People, the Amish and the Mennonites.  They are plain in every aspect of their lives, from dress, to work, to play, to school, to transportation, to communication.  After lots of studying and research on the "culture" of the Plain People I can honestly say, I understand why they do what they do, and why they interpret the scriptures the way they do, and for the most part, I totally agree. 
Are we going to become Amish? No.
But we are interested on becoming like them, living a plain and simple life. 

Let me give you some examples of how we are trying to accomplish that goal.
I will start with clothes, Ileigh and Elsah and my clothes, we wear and have worn for many years now, dresses only.  We believe women and girls should be dressed modestly at all times.  After MUCH sewing and wearing and discussing we have decided we like the cape dress the best!  So to that end we have been sewing cape dresses for Ileigh and myself.  We are trying to meet our goal of 4 everyday dresses, and 1 Sunday dress each.  Elsahs dresses are very easy to make and she has more than both of us put together!!  We buy our fabric from Gehmanns County Fabrics online, they have EXCELLENT customer service and great prices.  Esther Mae sells great poly cotton blends like Tropical Breeze and Country Rose. They never need ironing and never shrink! 
As far as "accessories", to be simple, we are going with black: shoes, stockings, coats, bonnets, shawls, etc.
Why? Because it's simple and easy!  You don't have to worry if your stockings match your dress or if your coat clashes with your bonnet etc.  Plus it allows you to concentrate on other things, not your wardrobe which, if I may, Christians should not be obsessed with any way, (sorry if I stepped on anyones toes). 
Aside from Biblical reasons for being plain, it is very practical.  As the Mother of 8 children I need things to be as simple and easy as possible.  I am also a bit on the obsessive side when it come to things matching and coordinating.  For example, if Elsah has on a green dress and I put her hair in braids, if I do not have matching green hair elastics, or not two of the same color, I can not stand it!!  I would have to take her hair down!  I know it sounds crazy but that kind of thing drives me up a wall!  So it's just easier on me to buy 200 brown elastics and always have them ready!  Simplifying my life is a priority for me. 

This post got bigger than I anticipated and I really should be painting or packing to cleaning, so I will stop for now but I can't wait to show you the boys wardrobe changes too!

Technology?

I received the nicest comment from Crystal, here.  She had some questions that I thought I might answer in this post.  By the way, we LOVE comments, leave as many as you want, ask any questions you would like, we will try our best to answer them. 

The first question Crystal asked was about continued blogging without electricity.  There are several options out there, from solar panels to generators to using the vans' battery.  For now we will use a small solar panel to charge our cell phone and laptop.  We are also looking into human generated power as a way to charge things, and keep in shape!

We definitely will restrict our computer time, the whole point of this move is to "go back in time" and live a simpler life.  We are keeping the blog going to keep a record of our adventure as well as keep our family informed of our doings, and at some point hopefully to help others who wish to live a simpler life.

Our plan so far is to update once a week.  That will be the only time the computer is used, the exception might be if we need farm animal information asap and can not find it in a book we own or by talking with friends and neighbors.  We hope to support our local merchants and purchase items close to home, but if we can't find what we need we are not opposed to buying online. 

The other question Crystal had was about staying up on current events.  While we don't desire to live in a bubble with our heads in the sand, we also feel a lot of "news" out there is unimportant and useless.  We will get the local paper and I think if there is anything huge such as the Japan earthquake or an event like 9/11 my mom, who I will talk to daily, will let us know and we can fire up the laptop and take a look.  But other than that we will be pretty busy keeping up on the farms current events!!

Things are changing around here very quickly, we have begun painting the house and have just about finished packing all but clothes and a few toys.  We have gotten rid of pounds and pounds of, well junk!!  I have whittled down every ones clothes to a manageable amount, toys have been sharply reduced and mom and dad's large book collection is smaller too!  Basically we found we own too much stuff!  It really is crazy, I feel almost embarrassed by all of it.  We will be having a yard sale in April, and the rest of what we don't absolutely have to have we will give away. Last week we unplugged the wii and cancelled our netflix.  The younger boys were sure their lives were coming to an end, but believe it or not there has been much less fighting and lots more playing, outside with "their bodies" as they say.  It's so nice not to have to police the computer and wii times, making sure everyone gets a fair turn and that nobody plays too much, what a pain that was, YEAH, I don't have to do that any more!!  It just hit me YIPPEE!!



Martin houses on the farm



So as you can see things are very busy here, life is changing everyday!

Miss White

I would like to introduce you to a new member of our farming family. 

Miss White has been with my family as long as I can remember, I can't think of a time when she wasn't there.  I really hoped she might want to come to Missouri with us, but I was afraid my parents wouldn't want to let her go.  Well, after much discussion and planning we asked Miss White if she would like to come help us on the farm.........she said yes!!  She will be of most help to Ileigh and I but the boys are fascinated by her as well, everyone just wants to be close to her!  While she is older, she hasn't worked in a long while having been on a sabbatical, but now she is ready and willing to help us out!!
The great thing is she will even have her own room in the farmhouse.

Miss Whites new room.

She and I have already collaborated on two projects and we are ready to start a third, she is a pleasure to work with, quiet, calm, and effcient.  I feel truly blessed to have her with us on this new adventure. I was worried about how I would accomplish some of my tasks but now I know I can do many things with her helping me. 
Would you like to meet her?

Here she is, a White Family Rotary treadle machine, built January 16,1908, in Cleveland, Ohio.  My Mother got her from my Grandma Frankie decades ago, she used her for decoration, didn't really think she would work.  Mom said I could have her, I am so thankful, we cleaned her up and oiled her and she worked!!!!  Sewed like a dream, no tension problems or thread breaking, it's really unbelievable!  It's wholly different working on a non-electric machine.  A bit difficult at times but for the most part it's been great!  We've sewed one dress for Elsah and one for me so far, working on another right now.  Thanks again Mom and Dad!

Bits and Pieces

Hello All,

How was your long weekend?  Busy, that's the only word to describe things here.  We are packing now in earnest as well as doing repairs and starting some painting.  We have 68 days until we take possession of our farm.  We actually closed last Tuesda,y February 15th, it was kind of anti-climatic.  We sent off the papers and money and heard back that all was signed and that was that.  Not very exciting.  We did have special dinner that night and then proceeded to call everyone "Farmer" , "Hey Farmer Mom, or Farmer Kegan, ect."  We OWN a farm!!!  WHoo HOO!!  



The back of our farmhouse



The days seem to go very slow yet too fast, we are expecting company in March and have given ourselves that deadline for getting most the packing done.  eeekkk too much to do!  On top of packing, ect. Ileigh and I are attempting to sew ours and Elsahs entire wardrobe.  We don't HAVE to, there are no rules of course but we WANT to, we've really had a fun time of it but there is alot more sewing to be done. 

We are entering into a culture so to speak that we are unfamiliar with, Old-Fashioned, Off the Grid, Plain Living.  It's intimidating, but very exciting.  Sometimes Dane and I wonder if we're too old for this, there is so much to learn, so much we don't know, but that also invigorates us.  We can't wait to try our hand at all the new stuff; driving a horse and buggy, gardening on a huge scale, washing laundry by hand, lighting non-electrically, milking cows, raising our food.  Just writing about it makes me so excited I can hardly wait! 

Thank You Lord for Your Blessings----Life is Good!




The view at the end of our lane.

 

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!!

Twenty years ago today was one of the happiest days of my life............Dane asked me to marry him!!  I was a senior in high school and Dane had just gotten out of boot camp.  We went to a very nice dinner then afterwards he proposed.  Twenty years is long time...here is a picture my mom took before we left for our date.

Wow, I have nothing nice to say about my outfit, scary huh?

I think this is the next day.  I was so happy!

All I ever wanted to do was be a wife and mother, my dream was coming true.  Dane and I didn't really date in the way that our friends were, we had dinner at each others houses and took long drives in the country, talking about how we wanted a ton of kids and a farm in the country!  We were actually "courting" without really knowing it!  Dane and I are more in love than ever, as we begin a new chapter in our lives we are truly depending on each other, there is a nice familar comfort in setting out on a grand journey with someone you truly know and love.  I love you Daney and will for all my days!

"This is True Love - do you think this happens everyday?"

The Princess Bride

Check This Out!

The other day I submitted a photo to Amish America. It is a blog with lots of Amish information.  They occasionally post pictures of interest about the Amish or the countryside, ect.  I sent in my buggy picture.....and they put it up!  Here's the link, you have to scroll down past the stuff about Groundhog Day, then, there is my picture!  Just thought you might like to see!
Have a great day!
Misty

Amish America