LRRP Bars (Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol)

Over the course of the past couple of months, our family has taken our preparedness efforts on the trail.  We have been hiking with loaded packs to determine what works and what doesn't.  We have learned what gear we like, what attachments are an asset and what items are essential to our kit.  It has been nothing short of a learning experience.

One thing we have found is that we need energy on the trail (especially the children), and, not wanting to spend the money on high priced energy bars, I decided to make my own.  We have affectionately named our bars LRRP (pronounced "lurp") Bars, short for Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol Bars, because they are packed with nuts, fruits, complex sugars and carbohydrates making them perfect for nutrition on the go.  They are made from items most often found in a typical pantry and every ingredient is easily stored.  This recipe can be changed according to individual likes and dislikes and requires very little time to make.  I will give the original recipe along with the substitutions I made.

LRRP Bars

1 C rolled oats (I use thick oats - I also love to toast the oats before using - 10-15 minutes at 350° until slightly browned)
1/2 C whole wheat flour
1/2 C wheat and barely nugget cereal (GrapeNuts) (I left this out)
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 beaten egg
1/4 C applesauce
1/4 C honey
3 T brown sugar
2 T vegetable oil
1/4 C unsalted sunflower seeds (I used salted)
1/4 C chopped walnuts (I used pecans)
1 (7 ounce) bag chopped, dried mixed fruit (I used Craisins but would love raisins, dates, dehydrated apples, raspberries, etc.)
I added 1 C chocolate chips (although it is not in the recipe)

1. Preheat oven to 325°.  Line a 9" square baking pan with aluminum foil.  Spray the foil with cooking spray.  (I doubled the recipe and used a 15" x 10.5" pan).
2. In a large bowl, stir together the oats, flour, cereal and cinnamon.  Add the egg, applesauce, honey, brown sugar and oil.  Mix well.  Stir in the sunflower seeds, walnuts and dried fruit.  Spread mixture evenly in the prepared pan.
3. Bake 30 minutes, or until firm and lightly browned around the edges.  Let cool.  Use the foil to lift from the pan.  Cut into bars or squares and store in the refrigerator (or bake slightly longer, until the bars are a little dryer, and store at room temperature).

*Substitutions I would use:  I think adding Whey protein or powdered milk would be great for upping the protein.  I would use 10 grain cereal instead of the GrapeNuts.  I think I could come up with all kinds of fun things to add!

Thick Oats

With Whole Wheat flour

Adding the applesauce and eggs

And the honey (somewhat crystallized, but raw)

Pecans, Sunflower Seeds, Craisins

Mixing it all together

Lining the pan with tin foil and oiling it

Spread in the pan

Baked, out of the pan and ready to cut

Yum!  Soft and Chewy

These are power-packed and full of goodness!   Children and adults alike think they're a keeper.  These will make your next Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol a little easier to take!

Church on the Mountain Top

Maid Elizabeth and I have been hiking 3 miles every day with Sir Knight joining us on the weekends.  The younger children have been begging to join us, so this morning we decided to pack up the whole family, hit the trail and have church at the top of the mountain.

Sir Knight slung on his Blackhawk 3 day pack, I, my Blackhawk Hydrastorm and Miss Serenity and Princess Dragon Snack carried their small Condor packs.  Two of us had CamelBak's and the rest carried water bottles.  We loaded up and headed down the road (about 5 minutes) to a nearby park and set off for higher ground.

Princess Dragon Snack led the way, with Master Calvin close on her heels.  We thought the younger children would get tired quickly and anticipated carrying them, but both of them did remarkably well.  Dragon Snack led the whole way (and often had to wait up for the rest of us) and Master Calvin did all of the difficult hiking on his own two legs, only when we were almost done and going down hill did he poop out and accept a ride on Master Hand Grenade's shoulders.

Chainsaw art - someone put this smiley face on the end of the log

Takin' a breather

A coyote skull?

Single file

It was quite a hike heading up the trail (almost 2 miles of steep incline) but the views when we reached the top made every step worth taking.  It was incredible!

Looking over the cliffs to the lake far below, Sir Knight led our family in corporate worship.  What an incredible thing, in the midst of God's beautiful creation, to sing His praises accompanied by creatures He created.

Normally, Maid Elizabeth and I go traipsing out of the house with little more than our hiking clothes and pedometer, but today was a different story.  Sir Knight encouraged us to take our First Line Gear (thanks Joe Nobody!) and get used to wearing it.  Wow!  What a difference 20 pounds can make when you are hiking up the side of a mountain!  I thought it was going to kill me!  (Not really, but I had to stop with irritating frequency).  I did find out that my pack was incredibly comfortable.  It wasn't off-balanced and didn't rub and I loved having my Camelbak at my left shoulder whenever I needed a drink.  It did, however, make me realize that I had better get used to carrying my pack if I intend to be able to get out of dodge with my pack on my back.

Master Calvin bummin' a ride

Helping little brother across a dead-fall

There he goes!

Princess Dragon Snack

Miss Serenity running across

We had a great day.  We plan to ramp up our adventures and head out any chance we get. Next time, we will take homemade power bars (the kids got hungry about the time we hit the peak of the mountain) and make sure everyone is carrying their pack and Camelbak.

Not only did we have a wonderful time as a family, we got to take church to the mountain top.

Whole Wheat Bread That Will Have You Coming Back For More!

Homemade bread can be a little tricky.  Particularly wheat.  Often times, although tasty, the bread can be crumbly and course, making it difficult at best to make a decent sandwich.  My goal in bread making is to produce a wonderfully tasting, moist loaf with a fine crumb.  I have made more than my fair share of bread with the texture of sand paper, but not this recipe.  This is the one.  This is the bread that turns out every time.  It is great all-around homemade bread.  It is incredible fresh from the oven, fabulous toasted and simply perfect cooled and sliced for sandwiches.  You can use the wheat/white flour ratio in the recipe or all whole wheat - either way, you won't be disappointed.

Simply Perfect Whole Wheat Bread

In a large bowl mix:

3 C warm water (110°)
2 T dry yeast
1/3 C honey

Stir in:

5 C bread flour

Let sit for 30 minutes, or until big and bubbly (sponging).

Mix in:

3 T melted butter
1/3 C honey (in addition to the honey already added)
1 T salt
2 - 4 C whole wheat flour

Knead for about 10 minutes.  The dough should be pulling away from the sides of the bowl (or counter) but still sticky to touch.

Place in a greased bowl, turning once to coat the surface of the dough.  Cover with a dishtowel.  Let rise in a warm place until double.

Punch down and divide into 3 loaves.  Place in greased 9x5 inch loaf pans and allow to rise until dough has topped the pans by one inch.

Bake at 350° for 25 to 30 minutes; do not over bake.  Lightly brush the tops of loaves with 2 tablespoons melted butter when done to prevent crust from getting hard.  Cool completely.

Hard White grain in the grinder

The first 4 ingredients after having "sponged" for a half an hour

The dough after first rising

In the bread pans

Ready for the oven

Just out of the oven

If you are looking for a good bread recipe, this is whole wheat bread that will have you coming back for more!

In Search of Patrick Henry

Slavery
[Noun] Bondage;  The state of entire subjection of one person to the will of another.  Slavery is the obligation to labor for the benefit of the master, without the contract of consent of the servant.  Slavery may proceed from crimes, from captivity or from debt.  Slavery is also voluntary or involuntary; voluntary, when a person sells or yields his own person to the absolute command of another; involuntary, when he is placed under the absolute power of another without his own consent.

The definition of slavery is an interesting study.  My early eduction taught me that the evils of slavery had been abolished with the War between the States.  Good had triumphed over evil and our enlightened countrymen had forever vanquished slavery in our great nation.  But somewhere deep in my soul, I knew that slavery had not been slain, only transformed.  What had once been hallmarked by shackles and whips now takes on the appearance of safety and freedom.  Rather than wearing the burden of social horror, the newly disguised slavery proudly took up the mantle of nobility, offering justice, equality and the furtherance of all mankind.  The newly fashioned slavery is far more insidious than the old - where the brutality of slavery had once been exposed to the truth, it is now hidden in the glory of Welfare, the New Deal and Public Assistance.  No longer is slavery limited to a small portion of society, it has grown to encompass the whole.

Our citizens have become slaves humbled before a master of our own making.  Through our ignorance, our apathy and our overriding desire for safety and security, we have bound fast ourselves and our fellow man.  But that is only the beginning of the tragedy.  In our quest to engineer a social utopia, we have failed to produce great men of character and stature.  Rather than bearing children that will rise up and stand in the gap between the innocent and the oppressor, we have born a nation content to suckle at the breast of the almighty government.

My heart fails me.  I long for great men to rise from our rubble, proclaiming truth and liberty in the humble hamlets, villages and towns of our countryside and in the hallowed halls of our vast cities.  Not only would their words ring strong and true, they would risk their fortunes, their reputations and their lives to ensure true liberty.  They would stand - and in the process, they would direct the course of nations.

I am in search of Patrick Henry.  I am looking for the strength of character that forced men to stand before evil knowing it could cost them everything.  I am looking for a leader who's faith in our people and our God far outweighs his own selfish desire for power and glory.  I am looking for a man to stay the course in spite of supreme opposition.  I am looking for one who will stand and say, "It is in vain, sir, to extenuate the matter.  Gentlemen may cry, Peace, Peace - but there is no peace.  The war is actually begun.  The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms.  Our brethren are already in the field.  Why stand we here idle?  What is it that gentlemen wish?  What would they have?  Is life so dear or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains or slavery?  Forbid it, Almighty God!  I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!" (Patrick Henry)

We are a nation in search of Patrick Henry.

Copyright© 2012  Enola Gay

All Rights Reserved

Living the REAL Dream

For the past twelve years, we have lived off the grid.  When we began our adventure, we lived with no electricity, no running water and no indoor plumbing.  Little by little we added a generator, inverter and batteries.  We wired the shouse for electricity and added plumbing.  We put up a wind turbine, added a couple of solar panels and invested in a second inverter.  We upgraded from an antique propane refrigerator to an off-grid specific electric refrigerator.  Then we went for broke and installed a large solar array in the hopes that it would provide us with more electricity than we could possibly need.  But, regardless of the upgrades, improvements and advances we have made, we are still, unequivocally off-grid.

Being off-grid requires a complete and total change in lifestyle.  Our family made the change cold-turkey.  In a matter of days, we went from being a simple, suburban family, living the typical American Dream to modern day pioneers practicing the skills perfected by our great-grandparents.  Our home became a living, working museum.  Not a day went by when folks didn't drop by, just to see how we were living.  Everyone had an opinion.  Everyone had a suggestion.  Everyone said we were "Living the Dream".  But, not everyone was living the dream.  They went home to their comfortable houses, hot running water and flushing toilets.  They flipped a switch and the lights came on and they didn't give a thought to how much electricity they had generated that day.

The years have come and gone.  We have gotten used to being off-grid.  We hardly blink when we have to start the generator to take a bath or do the laundry.  We check the Tri-metric as a matter of course, without consciously noticing.  Even our youngest children can tell when the pressure tank is full and run out to shut off the gen-set.  Living off-grid has become second nature.  But, once in a while, we take stock, and then we realize how much work living off the grid truly requires.  

Back in the day, when I wanted to do laundry, I simply walked into the laundry room, tossed some clothes into the washer, pushed the button and let the washing machine do the rest.  After the washing machine was done with it's magic, I would put the clothes into the dryer, let them spin and fold wonderfully soft, warm, clean laundry.  Simple, yes?  Not so much now that we are living the "simple" life.  When I did laundry this morning, I had to go outside to start the generator.  When I got to the shed, I realized that the generator was empty and I needed to fill it with fuel.  Grabbing the funnel, I filled the generator, pulled the choke, switched the breakers off and pulled the cord.  The generator hummed to life.  I turned off the choke, flipped on the breakers and headed back into the shouse.  Before I started the laundry, I took a few minutes to flush and plunge the toilet.  Because we don't flush every time (limited water, you know), I have to flush and plunge every time the generator is on - every time - for twelve years.  The plunger and I are on a first name basis!  After flushing, I started the laundry.  I do have a washing machine (with hot water!), so washing clothes is really pretty simple.  Once the clothes have been washed, I plop them into a laundry basket, cart it out to the kitchen and proceed to shake out each article and hang it on the clothes horse.  After the clothes horse is full, I heft it up (on the pulley) to get it out of the way.  Once the clothes have been hung, I take the towels and sheets and any other large items to the stairs and hang them to dry.  This is living the REAL off-grid dream.

Getting ready to start the generator

Laundry on the Clothes Horse

Continuing on with my day, I check our Tri-metric, which is a meter telling us how much electricity we are using or making.  If we get low on power (22.5 volts or lower) I start the generator and charge our batteries.  If the batteries are low, I turn off non-essential electronics and make sure the electric kettle and microwave are not used.  If the batteries are particularly bad, I start the generator and plug in our industrial battery charger and really put the current to the battery bank.  This is living the REAL off-grid dream.

The Tri-metric (using 17.3 amps)

The battery bank

Cooking and baking used to consist of turning on the electric oven, setting a timer and going about my other business.  Now, my culinary skills have been honed by the heat of a wood cookstove.  In order to get my oven ready for baking, I split kindling and small wood, open the drafts and put my arm in the oven to determine proper baking temperatures.  Once in the oven, I rotate food regularly, put heat shields over the tops and sides of pans to keep things from burning and measure baking time with my nose.  This is living the REAL off-grid dream.

Getting the fire good and hot

An oven full of goodness!

I don't regret moving to a shouse in the middle of a prairie and leaving power lines far behind.  I love the way that we live.  But our lives are full of hard work and sacrifice.  The romantic notions of oil lamps and cozy quilts have been tempered by the realities of noisy generators, heavy clothes horses and fussy wood cookstoves.  

Had I known before going off-grid how much work it would be, I think I would have balked.  I am so glad I didn't know - I would have missed so much.  I would have missed learning what I couldn't live without - and what I could live without.  I would have missed  learning how to keep going when things got tough.  I would have missed learning how to make do with little.  I would have missed living the REAL dream.

Our Life in Pictures

Sir Knight scrambling eggs in his "First Line" gear
(don't ask)

Maid Elizabeth practicing blood draws on Master Hand Grenade

The Who's are asnooze

The red boots give Master Calvin away

Master Hand Grenade belaying his younger siblings

Our newest cattle panel creation - a Rose Arbor

Cattle Panel Creations

Cattle Panel Arbor

Over the years, we have come to realize that the term "Cattle Panel" was far to narrow of a description for the welded metal wonders most often used for fencing.  When we first acquired our cattle panels, we naively used them for their intended purpose - fencing panels.  They proved much tougher than run-of-the-mill field fencing and corralled even the orneriest milk cow.  With years of use, they became bent but maintained their usefulness.  We found that they could be used as support for pole beans, as a sturdy enclosure for our sun room and as a make-shift, movable grazing pen.  But that was just the beginning.....

Last spring, Maid Elizabeth and I fashioned a cattle panel arbor in front of our door, creating the perfect muse for our Virginia Creeper.  Then, my folks built a "Conestoga Wagon" from a trailer topped with domed cattle panels covered in tarps (NOT the blue ones!) to create a movable firewood trailer.  It was perfect.  They towed their trailer to the spot they were cutting wood, filled the trailer and moved it to the next location, stacking wood as they went.  When the trailer was full, they backed it next to their porch and had a handy wood supply all winter.

This year, Sir Knight and I decided that we wanted to keep our shed (attached to our Shouse) free from wood so that we had plenty of room to store generators, chargers and our rolling stock (4-wheeler, motorcycle, bikes and lawn mower).  Because we needed another place to store firewood, we put our thinking caps on and came up with a variation of my parents "Conestoga Wagon" idea.  Once again, cattle panels to the rescue.

We made our "Wood Hut" out of three cattle panels.  First, Sir Knight and Master Hand Grenade pulled three, beat up cattle panels from our stash and laid them side-by-side in the field where we wanted the hut.  Next, they lay two 2x6 end to end (spliced with another section of 2x6) and put the end of the cattle panel  on top.  After placing two 2x4's on top of the cattle panel, Miss Serenity proceeded to run screws into them about every four inches, securing the cattle panels between the 2x4's and 2x6's.  After securing both ends of the panels in this fashion, Master Hand Grenade and Sir Knight rolled the panels into a domed, upright position.  Once upright, Sir Knight screwed a 2x4 onto the back and the front of the hut, stabilizing the structure considerably.  After it was all together, we picked it up and moved it into position and started filling it with firewood.

Miss Serenity and Master Calvin

Master Calvin assisting Sir Knight

Sir Knight and Miss Serenity working together
(securing the panels with tie wraps)

Putting the finishing touches on the front of the hut

Princess Dragon Snack handing wood to Sir Knight
(notice her pink, lace hat!)

Right now, our "Wood Hut" is little more than a wire cage filled with firewood.  We have tarps on order (pretty green ones!) and will cover the hut, and secure it with re-bar once they arrive.  I'll keep you posted on our progress, and let you know if our experiment is a success or a failure.  Wind is a huge concern where we live, so the quality of the tarps may well be the difference between a great wood storage system and a winter of burning wet wood.

We have found cattle panels to be so versatile that I cannot imagine any homestead complete without them.  We love our Cattle Panel Creations!

Spring Cleaning

I have had a change of heart.  For the past couple of years, I have been doing the bare minimum around our home.  Oh, I organized the storage container and half-heartedly tidied up the shed, but I had no desire to waste my time improving our property, after all, I didn't really want to live here.  The more I let things go, the worse things looked, and the worse things looked, the more I wanted to move.  Let somebody else do the work, I thought.

After over two years of feeling sorry for myself, I woke up.  As much as I wanted to move, I realized that I needed to be a good steward of what I had.  And so I went to work.  I decided what was important to me and put my shoulder to the plow.  I planted two raspberry beds, planted an herb bed and prepared more beds for lettuce, beans and carrots.  I bought a lawn mower (ancient, but it works great!) and set the children to work mowing our fields.  We organized the outdoor racking and stacked lumber, barrels and tires.  We took multiple trips to the dump and set the burn pile on fire.

And then we noticed the change.  One evening, as Sir Knight and I were surveying our kingdom, he commented on how wonderful it was looking.  He mentioned that although we had done nothing monumental, all of the little things had made a huge difference.  It inspired him, he said, to do more - to tidy, to organize and to build.  By being good stewards of what we had, we had found contentment.  Rather than despising what we had, we embraced it.

As I thought about our spring cleaning, it occurred to me that our marriages could use a good spring cleaning from time to time.  How often do we become complacent, apathetic and even hostile toward one another?  How often do we allow things to get messy and then trip over our messes?  The messier things get, the less we want to deal with them.  And soon enough, we are looking for an address change.

While marriage can be challenging, it is well worth the effort to do a little spring cleaning.  If you are thinking of changing addresses, consider investing in your own real estate instead.  Take it upon yourself to be respectful (yes, even if your husband isn't being respectable).  Be kind, be patient, be cheerful.  Check your attitude at the door.  Hold your tongue if you can't say anything nice.  Little by little, with careful stewardship, your home real estate may take on a new luster.  You may come to find that home truly is where the heart is.

Spring cleaning awakened a new appreciation for our land.  Tending our marriages can do so much more.

Copyright© 2012 Enola Gay  All rights reserved

Help! How do I defeat Pirates?

The most absurd thing just happened me.  Someone forwarded an email to me - that I originally wrote!  The email was my post Upside-down Land, verbatim.  No changes, exactly word for word, but, more importantly, no author credit.  Then, out of curiosity, I googled Upside-down Land.

To say that I was stunned is to put it lightly.  Upside-down Land has traveled everywhere from peoples inboxes to blogs to radio talk shows!  A number of rather imposing looking blogs (Sodahead.com, TalkRoswell.com and Opencarry.org) posted the article and it was featured on a number of radio talk shows as well.  Not one of the sites I visited credit me or Paratus Familia Blog with the original content.

The problem I have with my posts be plastered all over the internet is that my material is subject to copywrite agreements.  I don't mind other people posting what I have written (in fact I take it as a compliment), as long as my name or blog location are included.  What I write is part of who I am and I take exception to my intellectual property being pirated.

So, do any of you have advice on protecting my articles in the future?  If you do, I would love to hear from you!

Wagon of Fools

Contrary to popular belief, suffering is part of the human condition for people desiring to follow Christ.  But, I have come to know, that although painful and uncomfortable, suffering is a gift from a loving Father.  The longer I have been a follower of The Way, the deeper my faith and trust in God has become, and the more my eyes have been opened to His ways.   When I was a child, I thought like a child, but when I became a woman, I put away childish things.  And in putting away childish things, I discovered the fullness of Gods love and his immense grace towards His children.

Many years ago, Sir Knight and I lost a daughter to stillbirth.  We had planned for this baby and anxiously awaited her arrival.  Her death was devastating.  Many nights, Sir Knight lay helplessly listening to the body wracking sobs that can only emanate from a grieving mother.  Although I knew God, I railed against a Father that could have saved my baby, but chose not to.  One minute I was angry with God and the next minute I was crushed with guilt, knowing that my sinful life had most likely led to this moment.  Deep in my soul I knew that God forgave my sins but didn't exclude me from suffering the consequences.  I was broken.

One morning, as another day dawned, I walked through our neighborhood praying for understanding, peace and comfort.  As tears coursed down my face, my heart was softened.  I prayed to thank God for the sweet pregnancy I had enjoyed with Chase.  I thanked Him for the hours I had been allowed to hold her.  I thanked him for the two other children He has blessed me with.  I thanked God.

And then I saw her.  Just as clearly as I can see my children before my eyes, I saw my sweet little girl.  She sat on the shoulder of my Lord, looking at me with blue eyes framed by soft brown curls.  I reached for her and Jesus looked at me with intense love and said "She is not for you now.  Now, she is with me.  Someday, you will join us".  And they were gone.  The void, too, was gone.  The void in my heart was filled with the unshakable knowledge that my daughter was with her savior. I was at peace.  But even more than peace, I had been given the greatest of gifts.  God himself had stored a treasure in heaven - for ME.  One of my greatest treasures - my daughter - was waiting for me in heaven and with that treasure was part of my heart.  I was given an immense gift from the Creator of the universe.

Time and again, as I have sought to know God and be molded into the image of His son, I have suffered.  Many times I have cried "Why".  Often I have been sure that my suffering was punishment.  But over and over and over God has whispered in my ear of His insurmountable love, of His forgiveness and of the plan that only He can know.  And in the suffering, I have learned to know God and to trust Him and to love Him - and to know His overwhelming love for me.

And, it's not just me.  A couple of months ago, I was sent a book that was wrought with the understanding of the refining power of suffering.  It was life changing.  I had thought that I was the only one that could see God's best in life's worst.  I'm not.  Author Samuel Benjamin Gray put together a book of parables called Wagon of Fools that digs deep into the foibles of men and reveals the beauty of God's perfect plan.  It was so powerful, in fact, that I spent many mornings reading parables to the rapt audience of my children with tears streaming down my face.

Read this book at your peril, but only if you want to see the glory of God in a wagon of fools.

Window Dressing

We are stuck.  We would love nothing more than to move, set up our retreat and get busy with the business of living.  But, here we are - living in a shouse in the middle of a prairie with nary a milk cow or orchard in sight.

When we bought our property, we did so with half a thought given to survival.  Our land has a year 'round creek going through one corner, is comprised of half hay ground and half timber.  We are rural, although close enough to the city for Sir Knight to work, however we dream of being really rural.

In our perfect world, we would live in the high mountains.  Our property would be circled on two sides by two different year around creeks that intersect.  We would have a bubbling, gravity fed spring.  We would be surrounded by state and timber company owned land and our nearest neighbor would be a mile away.  We would have a large root cellar, a green house and a spring house to cool the milk.  We would have a well constructed, defensible house on a basement (for food stores and whatever else we might need), a large shop and a beautiful barn compete with Dutch doors on the stalls.  Our garden would be deer fenced, along with our orchard, and our bees would have their own "beehaus" to overwinter.  We would have raspberries and blackberries and even our own patch of elderberries.  Our pasture would be populated with milk cows, beef cows and a few good head of horses.  We would have full fuel tanks, working generators and a complete solar set up.  Oh, and we would have a fully equipped out-house (for just in case) and even and ice house.  Not only would be able to comfortably house our extended family long-term, we would have a large bunk house for any overflow.

Now, I will shake myself and return to reality.  In stark contrast to the romantic notions of my perfect end-of-the-world retreat, our reality is somewhat less appealing.  We live in a small "shouse" (shop/house) in the middle of a hay field (I call it a "prairie" when I want to conjure up images of a pioneer family living off the land and forging a new life).  Our creek is barely within walking distance and neighbors can be seen dotting the landscape.  Our storage is an unsightly 40' container and our fields are void of livestock.  Our bees died during the winter and our garden is nothing more than a few scattered raised beds.  Our solar system works well, however, we are still down one inverter and our batteries are less than desirable.  We have a veritable graveyard of dead generators and our farm fuel tank is currently empty.  And to top it all off, we are very nearly out of wood but not out of winter.

The truth of the matter is that we are in the same situation as countless other survivalist wanna be's.  We see the world falling apart around us and long to prepare, but for one reason or another are stuck where we are.  And therein lies the rub.

And so, what do we do?  Well, it seems to me that we only have a couple of choices.  We can get frustrated, angry and despondent or we can trust that God will move us if that is His will.  We have chosen the latter.  No, our location is not perfect.  No, our set-up is not perfect.  No, our heart is not here.  But, for reasons we may not understand, this is where God has placed this family.

After more than two years of being desperate to move, we have reconciled ourselves to the fact that God's plan is not our plan and God's time is not our time.  After years spent not building fences or buying logging truck loads of wood or planting gardens, hoping to move, we have decided to trust.  We have decided to trust that God knows what the future holds and that He knows where we are and that He knows what is good and right for our family.  As we walk forward following Him, we have planted a garden, we have scraped bee boxes and ordered bees.  We have ordered wood for the stove and fuel for the farm tank.  We have moved forward, trusting that God will take care of us where we are, rather than waiting for Him transplant us to our survivalist dream home.

We have come to realize that God is our ultimate survival plan, all the rest is window dressing.