My son, Jake, is halter breaking his show heifer.  My husband is helping him.  They decided to use a tractor in the process.  They ran her through the cattle chute and put the halter on her head with a lead rope attached.  At first they let her walk around dragging the lead rope.  When she stepped on it, she was... »

This is not a very upbeat article.  I know that before I even begin.  Last August my grandfather passed away.  When he died, he took us by surprise.  My grandmother has been afflicted with Parkinson's disease for over two decades.  We always suspected that she would go first. Joyce Holliday is one of... »

If you have been in Southeast Texas for the last few days, then you would have thought that it was springtime.  It is January even though it feels like March this week.  I am sure that the weather will change soon and that it get cold again.  Texans say that "If you don't like the weather, wait 15 minutes."  As... »

Two of my children were recently diagnosed with dyslexia.  I immediately went to work researching, talking to experts, and reading on the subject.  My favorite source so far is The Gift of Dyslexia by Ronald Davis.  Mr. Davis gives practical step-by-step instructions for helping someone with dyslexia. One of the first... »

Years ago when my children first joined 4-H, we made butter from whipping cream in a jar.  We all took turns shaking it up.  Eventually fat globules began to form.  This was my first attempt at making butter.  Our method was also time-consuming. A year later I took my children to a Civil... »

Once we laid all the tile in my bedroom, bathroom, living room, and dining room, I started looking for the best way to clean the floor.  I wanted to find something that was easy to use.  I wanted it to do a great job.  I preferred to not use household chemical cleaners.  I... »

For the last two weeks I have bragged on Jake, my eight year old son.  He gave me a thoughtful gift for Christmas.  He honored me by bringing me breakfast in bed.  He is a great kid.  My other kids are great, too.  They are wondering why his name keeps coming up in my posts.  For some reason they think... »

When my family studies or discusses the Ten Commandments, it never fails that one of the kids will ask for the meaning of "Honor your parents."  I look at it as respect.  Respect your parents.  Do right by them.  It is not the same as obedience in my book.  One can... »

I have raved about the book, Nourishing Traditions, by Sally Fallon in a previous article called "A Review of Nourishing Traditions."  In the book, the author shares an unbelievable amount of research about the benefits of eating like our ancestors did.  She encourages us to soak our grains, lacto-ferment our produce, and eat grass fed products. Another book on the subject... »

One of the most thoughtful gifts I received for Christmas was from my son, Jake.  He decided to use some of his own money he earned from working for my father to go shopping for a few people on his Christmas list.  I happened to be on his list. Early one morning he happened to see part of an infomercial on... »

The middle part of the United States, including Texas, is bracing for an arctic cold front this week.  Well below freezing temperatures have already found there way in Northern states like Minnesota.  In our area so far away from the Arctic, we are expecting temperatures to fall in the teens for days.  Highs will be in the 30s.  Meteorologists are... »

I am so excited that we are now in the year 2010.  I had some discussion with friends if we should call it twenty-ten or two thousand ten.  It should be mildly interesting to see how the media and therefore fellow Americans refer to the year.  Why am I excited about a new year?  It is the hope of something... »