Sunday afternoon

So its time for a nap. Today's my last day on the farm, and I'm sad to be leaving, but happy to be going home. I miss my family like crazy.

I miss my dad's wisdom and insight. I miss sharing things I'm discovering in the Word with him. I miss listening to him talk, sing, play the guitar or whatever.

I miss my mom's counsel and advice. I miss cooking with her, talking with her, listening to her, working out with her and hugging her.

I haven't seen my oldest sister in months! I miss her family like crazy! My nephew is talking now, I've been told.

I miss the other married siblings, but I'm used to missing them. I can't wait to see them all when I get home!

I miss my oldest brother and his passion and dedication. I miss his piano playing too!

My sisters at home are my very best friends, and I miss them so much. I miss waking up and seeing their beautiful faces. I miss working with them, playing with them, talking with them, drinking coffee with them, and fighting with them.

The three little girls are such precious jewels! I miss their antics, their giggles and watching them grow up and discover life. They keep smiles on all our faces.

My manly, exuberant brothers, my pals, protectors and friends. They're all taller than me now. Even the youngest one. I miss looking up to see their faces. =) I miss their jokes.

I miss them all!

It's been an amazing week learning to be a farm girl. I've done things I never thought I would do, from milking a cow by hand to driving a tractor. I'm so grateful for the opportunity and the experience! (besides the fact that it was a ton of fun!)

Tomorrow I'll be boarding an airplane to fly home. I'm excited about that, because I love flying. Even by myself.

I'm excited to spend a week with all my brothers and sisters at home, because that doesn't happen very often!

I'm excited to see what the future holds, because I know the One who holds the future.

Oh, and I'm excited to see the 180Movie which is coming out tomorrow on their website, www.180movie.com. Check it out if you get a chance!

"Let no man despise your youth, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity."

That verse has been talking to me all day. =) Alright. Nap time is over. I'm gonna go wash milk buckets.

"Jesus is the Rock of my salvation, His banner over me is love!"

7:45 am, and this song is playing over and over in my head. All I wanna do is snuggle down into the blankets where its warm, but it's time to wake up, get up, get dressed and start my first day as a real farm girl.

See, I'm a total city girl, born and bred. But when my brother married a girl from Central Oregon and her 8 year old friend knew more about everything there is to know than I did, I decided it was time to expand my horizons. That's the nutshell version, and here I am, spending ten days with my sister-in-law's family on their farm.

It's a beautiful day today. 9:45 am, and the cows are milked, the calf bottle fed, (yep, that was me) the milking barn scrubbed down and breakfast cleaned up. The dishwasher is humming in the background, and the sun is shining. There's still a lot more work to be done today, and even more before the week is out.

Life is beautiful. God is all powerful, perfectly just, and full of mercy. His goodness is more than I can imagine. Jesus IS the Rock of my salvation, His banner over me is love. Yep, life is beautiful. You know that saying, "stop and smell the roses?" Well, sometimes I just need to stop and smell life.

We've gotta sort and clean the garlic harvest, but first I get to finish my coffee. =)