that I post an update around here?

I haven't had a whole lot of time for blogging and when I do, it's usually on our biz blog. Onine 'fun' has been pushed to the wayside for some time now. I sit here so often for biz purposes that when I get done what needs doing, I don't want to stay here any longer then I have to.

In new news, I'll be changing the blog some time in the future. Another 'prariemama' contacted me about the domain name, and I've been tossing around the name HomsteadMama for some time now, since it goes along with the biz, and really, I'm not a prairiemama while I'm here in the middle of mountains and ocean. lol HomesteadMama, that I hope to always be though so I think I could settle into that blog name very nicely and stay a while. This will give the other prairiemama the opportunity to take the domain for herself and I've already purchased the new domain for when I'm ready to make the move.

Speaking of moving... no, we aren't yet but we do have the place back on the market! The realtor we have, kind of fell into our lap. The realtor we had changed to last fall is going away to help his sister who just had a baby. He has asked another realtor, whom he trusts, to take his place.

Well howdy doody! This new realtor is something else. He absolutely loves our place and sees everything it has to offer. The listing he wrote up is nothing like the ones the other realtors have done. He's included all the info in there, pointing out that we're not just selling a home here, we're selling a full property with a cabin, a workshop, an additional building site, the stalls for horses, the extra green space, the creek, etc. etc. etc...

It's been such a huge breath of fresh air for us. Don't get me wrong, the last realtor was good, but this guy, for whatever reason, sees what we see. The other realtors just didn't seem to see it. It's not possible to sell something you're not excited about yourself. I guess the main difference here would be that this new realtor actually sells quite a few acreage properties, so he knows what they offer and the type of clients who are looking for them.

Enough rambling about that though. Let's hope three times a charm and that the place will finally sell and we'll be on our way. Oh, we've dropped our price by another 60,000.00 so that should help too.

In other news, the biz continues to do well and the kids are all really finding their niche within it. I love that not only am I working from home, but they are too! I don't expect they will ALL want to continue with it long term, but who knows. Time will tell. I love that we have it and that they have the option.

While the house is on the market, we've decided that we're going to become tourists in our local area. I did this when we put our previous home on the market years ago. We checked out all the local sites, some free, some not. Tomorrow we are going to check out a place where they keep parrots. I'll be sure to share some photos if the allow us to take them. Then we're going to the local farmers market. Maybe we'll have lunch or an early dinner there too.

My husband has FINALLY been getting steady work again. This is such a HUGE blessing. For the past 1.5-2 years his work has been slow with only little spurts of work here and there. The timing worked out ok, because we needed him here more to finish the work on the property, but at the same time it was difficult to make ends meet without him working! We've made it through though, and it seems the dry spell has possibly passed. I sure hope so.

The kids are doing well with their schooling. Right now our eldest is concentrating mostly on writing and she's just started a new Proverbs Bible Study course. She's also trying to finish up all her math, so that she can be 'graduated' this year. This is her 'official' last year of school but learning never ends. I'll be drilling that into my children's heads until they are married and on their own.   She works for the family biz, and also babysits for a neighbour. She does well with both. She's looking forward to moving because she wants to get her drivers liscence. The way they do things here is very different from where we are moving to though, so she figured she'd just wait until we got there. LOL Oops... At this rate, even though it takes 2 years to complete everything here to be a full fledged driver, she could have been done with it all in about 5 months. Hee hee. I figure we'll just trust that she wasn't meant to have it yet. lol

Our son is about the only one who can't seem to find the time to fit a full schedule of school work into his days. He's been working with his dad pretty much full time, and then when they have time off (like this week) he tries to pick up the slack. I'm not too concerned. He still manages to finish things, just not on a schedule as others might. But that's why we homeschool, to give us the option to spend time living life and working as needed.

The three younger girls are doing very well. The twins are becoming speed readers, which just thrills me to no end! I find teaching reading to be the most difficult part of homeschooling. Once they really get the hang of it and can read anything on their own, homeschooling life just completely changes! I told my eldest that when they all have children, if they want help teaching their children to read, to just let me know! I'm determined to remind myself how hard it was, and how much I would have LOVED someone to be willing to help out with this one homeschooling task. I think I may have been a little overwhelmed at one time with having 3 of them all at the same level (one is older, but her reading is actually at a slightly lower level then her younger sisters). I'm so glad the hard part is over, and they can sit around with their noses in books whenever they want to now.

Watching children grow up is so very bittersweet. I really don't think I'll ever get over the idea of never having more babies. Yet, at the same time, life is so very full and I really am very blessed with the children I do have, so I feel I really have no right to complain. Yet, at least every second month because my cycles occassionally mess up, I find myself wondering, wishing, hoping, praying, asking, and thinking... maybe... just maybe it could happen? Just once more?

But then as the days go by, once again I realise I'm just torturing myself once again. I really try not to do it, but the mind, it plays tricks, so does the body. And then I remind myself that one day, there will be more babies. There will be grand-babies to spoil, and hold, and love.

Enough of my ramblings for now. I'll try to write more often.