A lot has happened in the last year since posting.  We've had another baby boy.  That makes 5, if you're counting.  His name is Judah, and he was born in October.  It was a real lesson in trusting God to have him, but he is definitely a blessing to us.  Such a happy baby.  Very content 95% of the time, and never terribly demanding.

Then, in December, on our anniversary actually, we moved.  We went from 2900 sq ft in the suburbs to 1100 sq ft in the country.  However, we aren't focusing on what we gave up.  We gained so much more than losing the space and a few other niceties that I do miss but not in comparison to what we have.  So, what do we have?  Nearly 2 acres on a minor state road.  A rolling landscape.  Some trees, 2 of which are definitely apple (not sure about some others), several mulberry trees, and a screen of pines along the road for privacy.  We now have 4 Alpine dairy goats; two are milking now and 2 are doelings.  We have 33 Golden Comet chickens.  28 are pullets and 5 are roosters.  When the adolescent hormones kick in, we'll cut the rooster population down to 2.  We got them April 1, so we should see some eggs in August, I think, but September at the latest.  We are considering getting 2 weanling llamas, a gelding and a sweet female.  That should be enough for our 2 acres, because we also have a huge garden and want to have some space for the boys to run.

Being back in the country is very healing for me.  I hope to come back here and post more.  Reading a friend's blog has inspired me.  I love hearing her update about her life on the farm and her sweet little ones.  I also want to share lots of things that Facebook just doesn't cut it for me.  It seems so self-absorbed over there.  Here, I don't care if anyone reads it, but I can chronicle every little detail in minutia if I want to, and I can go back and re-read.  Lots of thoughts floating around in my little head too...  A sermon I heard by MacArthur last night on government (and how glad I am to be working on a land use variance request, instead of disobeying the civil law that doesn't make sense to me).  The delight of finding black raspberries with the boys along the creek.  The wonder of an 8 month old's pincer grasp.  Marvelling at my garden abundance.  My funny goats.  My new love affair with my crockpot.  I can make French toast overnight and yogurt from our goats' milk (overnight too) in addition to my normal standards of refried beans, pork carnitas, and crockpot roasted chicken (the secret is to keep it off the floor of the crockpot with foil balls).  Right now, life is going well.  God has provided so much in the last few months - some healing for my (and my guys') heart(s), financial prosperity in this lean time (we're putting most of it in being able to self-sustain if needed), 3 new hobbies (cheesemaking, spinning, and soapmaking), contentment...  In the words of one of my favorite country songs - "a little bit of chicken fried."

I am incredibly busy, so I need to cut it short today.  I still have to do some school, clean up the kitchen, bake brownies for my MIL's birthday tonight, and maybe try to get in a batch of frozen yogurt (yes, it's homemade yogurt).  Oh, and I need to get a batch of 30-minute mozzarella started too.