Greetings!
Life has been so blessedly busy that I no longer write as regularly as I used to, however I would like to get back to that.  
Travis has been getting up at 5:00 a.m. for months now.  He goes to his field in the Odell area to work on planting and harvesting.  I follow suit by getting up around 6:30 and feeding animals, doing household chores, getting the kids set for any day's activities, and baking breads for purchase or other various things.
I have not been on-line much at all due to how full the days are, but that is a wonderful thing!  I have been purging the house of random items we don't use or need. I have even had a few visits with friends from my past.  I have a new mini horse to care for and three foster kittens, which my daughter helps with, so life is joyfully moving forward for us.

A Few New Happenings
Just a few weeks ago I learned from a Facebook post of a large braided rug for sale at the church I grew up attending in Hood River Oregon.  I have been dreaming of a large braided rug for years but they are super expensive!  Rightly so because I can imagine how much work goes into them.
Anyway, I ended up purchasing this beautiful rug for $12.00!  I also later learned that it originally belonged to my childhood friend's family.  That makes it all the more special to me.
I have been trying to simplify life and only buy what's necessary, but could not pass up this deal. 
Another special event was that we recently were able to take a quick trip to Sunriver Oregon.  We have done this annually for the past 15 years, and it has become a family tradition. We rent a condo that has access to a nice pool and hot tub.  Then we shop in the village, eat a few meals out, and do tons of sight seeing.  This year there were a few places closed down to due to Covid, but we were unable to go last summer since everywhere was in complete lockdown, so we were simply grateful to be able to enjoy what we could during this year's stay.
It took a small army of people back home to tend to our animals. We had a person feeding the outside animals, someone to tend our old dogs in the house, and even a sitter for our foster kittens so they did not have to stay at the crowded shelter while we were away. 
We feel so grateful, loved, and blessed by the kindness of others, and we also have never truly thought about how much we do each day until we are not there to do it! This realization was very eye opening.

School and Fall Preparations
Now we are once again getting ready for the kids to start school.  Blake is a junior this year and M.J. is in 7th grade. Next up we will be collecting wood for out wood stove, enough to get us through the winter.  We have canning to do and we need to touch up on some fences in the pasture. I am dreading the upcoming muddy season in our pasture but have yet to come up with an idea to solve the issue. I will keep plugging away at it. With each season comes unique challenges, but oh how I am so grateful for what each season brings, and all of us in our family are looking forward to cooler temperatures and the activities of fall!


I apologize that this post is a bit scattered from all my thoughts, but I hope it brings peace to others in some way. The take away, I hope, is to focus on your home and family.  Follow your heart's intuitions toward doing each day what makes you happy. Contribute to the world in some way whether that looks like volunteering in your community somehow, creating unique art, or being present every day for your family.  It really does take the weight of today's world off when you are genuinely living your own life the way it is intended, in the way that best serves YOU, instead of how we were taught to live.

 A simple life of living in harmony with nature, debt free, making our own way by being creative each day, and doing what we love amongst those we love is the new and better way to live! It's not always easy but that's the beauty of it sometimes.


I must go formula feed those foster kittens again and then clean myself up because M.J. and I have plans to bake breads and make candles today. 

I send my blessings and love to all,
Amy E. Darr
3 Corners Farm
Mosier, Orgon U.S.A.